Introducing FrameScrub, the lip-syncing tool for those who want to go panel-less.
How it Works
It works in most ways like the selection tool: you can click to select, double-click to edit, but you can also scrub-slide through graphic symbol frames.
You can even scrub through loop settings (using the Alt/Opt key).
Features
- Click and drag to update the first frame that is displayed.
- Hold SHIFT to cycle through frames faster.
- Hold ALT (OPT on Mac) to cycle through loop settings (Loop, Play Once, Single Frame).
- Hold CTRL (CMD on Mac) to temporarily revert to the Selection Tool.
Download
(compatibility: CS3 and newer, Flash 8 & MX 2004 untested)
FrameScrub.mxp
Installation
Open the MXP file in Extension Manager, follow the steps, and restart Flash. If you don’t see the FrameScrub in your toolbar (behind the selection tool), you can add it by accessing Edit (Flash on Mac) > Customize Tools Panel… Select a tool position, locate FrameScrub in the list on the left and use the right-facing arrow button to add FrameScrub to the selected tool position.
Other Lip Sync Tools from Ajar Productions
I’ve posted some EaseCaddy resources.
I’ll continue to collect them, if you have custom eases or tutorials to share (on easing), you can post them in the comments below or send them directly to us.
There is now a Pro version of our popular EaseCaddy extension (original post). The EaseCaddy panel is a Flash extension that allows you to to store, import, export, and apply custom eases.
The basic version of EaseCaddy is still totally free. By upgrading to the Pro version, you’ll be able to apply an ease to multiple tweens (motion and/or classic) simultaneously.
You can find more information about the new version of EaseCaddy on the product page.
If you have multiple versions of Adobe (or Macromedia) software installed, you probably have multiple versions of Extension Manager, the application that helps you install and manage extensions. This can lead to some confusion.
When you double-click an MXP (or ZXP) file, your operating system open your default version of Extension Manager. This may not be the version that you want, however. Suppose you have Flash Pro CS4 and Flash Pro CS5 installed. Your system will (probably) automatically launch Extension Manager CS5 when you attempt to install a new extension. This is okay if you want to install the extension in Flash CS5, but it will not be available in Flash CS4.
There are other issues that crop up when you have versions installed in multiple languages (and in some cases, if your language is not English). Luckily, there’s a simple way ensure that you’re using the correct version of Extension Manager.
- Launch the version of Flash Pro (or Dreamweaver, or Fireworks) in which you’d like to install the extension.
- Go to Help > Manage Extensions… and it will launch the matching installation of Extension Manager.
We’ve just released version 1.1 of the SmartMouth Flash extension with a couple of added features to help with the lip syncing process. This update is FREE to anyone who has already purchased licenses of SmartMouth.
Once you’ve downloaded and installed the new version, you should see a button at the bottom of the SmartMouth panel that says Advanced…
New Advanced Features
The Advanced button will bring up a window with 2 new options.
Looping
Loop settings allow you to control the loop setting applied to the outputted symbol instance(s). This can be applied if you want to animate each mouth shape, rather than use static images.
Keyframe Frequency
Keyframe Frequency allows you to control the frequency of keyframes that are automatically generated (1s – every frame, 2s – every other frame, or 3s – every third frame). You can use this setting to animate your mouth at a frame rate lower than that of the rest of your animation. For example, your animation might be set to 30 fps, but you want your mouth to animate at 15 fps, so that the mouth doesn’t look frantic. In this case, you could select 2s.
The image below demonstrates the different outputs generated by altering the Keyframe Frequency.
These new features are based on user requests. Please let us know what you think!
A number of Flash animators make great use of nested Timelines within graphic symbols. The frame from the graphic that is displayed can then be manipulated using the first frame property of the symbol instance. Unfortunately, when the animator double-clicks on the instance to edit the symbol, Flash displays frame 1 of the symbol’s Timeline instead of the frame assigned to the first frame property.
Dave Logan has a wonderful command called Enter Graphic At Current Frame that resolves this issue. Many Flash animators use graphics symbols so much that they would prefer “entering at the current frame” to be Flash’s default behavior when they double-click to edit a symbol. A number of these users have sent me requests through the Extension Request Form. So I put together this panel to essentially make “entering at the current frame” the default behavior. The panel simply has to be open for the behavior to work (the Auto jump box is checked by default). There are some extra buttons for some added fanciness.
This is a total freebie, but donations are appreciated (donate button located in the right-hand column).
Download
(Compatibility: Flash 8 & up)
FrameAim.mxp
Version 1.0.2 of the SmartMouth Flash extension is now available. Updates include:
- Upped the Flash Player timeout limit from 15 to 45 seconds for files that take a long time to process.
- Added a warning for files that exceed Flash Professional’s 16,000 frame limit.
- Fixed an error that was occurring when serial numbers were entered incorrectly.
- Upped to the trial limits to 4 100-frame attempts per document.
These updates should help with issues encountered on larger files, as well as allow for more testing with the trial version. We still plan to release some new features to the extension in the near future.
Also, if you didn’t see the previous post, note that 50% of SmartMouth sales for the rest of this month will be donated to the California State Parks Foundation.
